Efforts to Restore National Grid Ongoing, Says TCN

 

*By Joshua Omoniyi 

*Updated October 15, 2024*

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) confirmed on Tuesday that efforts to restore the national grid, which collapsed on Monday, are currently ongoing and nearing completion. In an official statement, Ndidi Mbah, the Public Affairs General Manager of TCN, reported that supply has been successfully restored to the Abuja axis and other major distribution load centers across the country.

The national grid experienced a partial disturbance on October 14, 2024, at approximately 6:48 PM. Mbah indicated that recovery efforts commenced immediately, with the Azura power station playing a crucial role in the blackstart process. By 10:24 AM on Tuesday, the recovery had advanced significantly, although it faced a slight setback that temporarily hindered progress.

Despite this minor challenge, Mbah assured that TCN continued its recovery efforts, achieving bulk power availability to around 90% of substations nationwide. 

The statement also highlighted that the partial disturbance had no impact on the Ibom Gas generating station, which remained isolated from the grid during the incident. This station continued to supply power to various regions in the South-Southern part of the country, including Eket, Ekim, Uyo, and the Itu 132kV transmission substations.

Mbah announced that a thorough investigation into the causes of the grid collapse would be conducted once the restoration process is fully completed. This incident marks one of several grid collapses in Nigeria this year, which have also occurred on February 4, March 28, April 15, July 6, and August 5.

While TCN has not yet commented on this latest incident, previous statements from Nafisat Ali, the Executive Director of the Independent System Operator (ISO) department, have outlined various factors contributing to the persistent issues with the national grid. Ali pointed to inadequacies in gas supply, poor coordination among generation plants and gas pipelines, and insufficient generation availability as key contributors to the ongoing challenges.

As the situation develops, the TCN remains committed to ensuring a stable and reliable power supply for all Nigerians.

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